Moving Forward
by Shaetil
Summary: One-shot - Based loosely around events that occur in the 4th movie. Shuraiya is struggling with his failure to carry out his long-sought revenge and finds comfort in the arms of ex-bounty hunter, Zoro. ZoShur, rated 'M' for language and smut. GuyxGuy sex, so do not read if you do not like.


_I do not own or claim to have created any characters, names, or other intellectual properties belonging to One Piece._

_This is what I do __simply_ as a hobby and my only wish is that you enjoy what you read.

Moving Forward

* * *

Running his fingers wearily through his strawberry blonde hair, Shuraiya winced as he accidentally grazed one of the various bruises on his face. Gripping the ship's rail tight, he gritted his teeth and glared at the horizon growing further behind them. He should be happy. Adelle was alive; his precious little sister had lived through that terrible day… However he only felt empty inside.

His baby sister's eyes had looked at him in fear; the same way one would regard a threatening stranger or a monster. He couldn't blame her. The terrible wounds on his body may look grotesque, but they were nothing compared to the unseen bloodstains on his soul. He had lied, and killed, and cheated, and killed… but what for?

In the end he hadn't been able to even put a scratch on Gasparde.

He hadn't been able to save his sister himself, he hadn't been able to carry out his revenge, and he hadn't been able to even die properly to escape the shame of his failures. The past eight years had been for nothing. He was weak.

Shuraiya let his body slump forward as he braced his elbows on the railing and hopelessly dropped his head into his hands. The vacancy left by his once all-consuming desire for revenge ached horribly in his chest. What was left for a pathetic excuse of a man like him?

Would he ever be anything other than a man who only knew how to shed the blood of those weaker than himself?

He didn't stir from his miserable brooding, even as a pair of boots approached and stopped at the rail beside him. The unique thunk of glass on wood finally prompted him to lift his head. The Strawhat captain's green-haired swordsman stood with a bottle of alcohol offered in his outstretched hand.

Shuraiya hesitated a moment before reaching out to accept the drink. Roronoa nodded in satisfaction before leaning on the rail to look out over the sea. The booze burned the injuries at the corner of his mouth, but Shuraiya drank anyway. After a few swallows, he set the bottle on the rail and joined the swordsman in contemplating the waves.

A lengthy silence hung over the pair, but Shuraiya waited. No man shared a drink with another without wanting to know something. The first mate reclaimed the mostly-full bottle and took a swallow for himself. Shuraiya watched out of the corner of his eye, listening to the soft chime of those three golden earrings. Black eyes met his as Roronoa set the drink back down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "They call you the Pirate Executioner."

Shuraiya blinked, a little surprised. "What's it to you, Pirate Hunter?"

"Nothing."

Shuraiya watched those dark eyes flick back to the sea before giving in to his own curiosity, "Why did you become a pirate?"

The first mate refocused on Shuraiya before grinning, "To follow my dream."

"Hmmm…" Shuraiya felt dissatisfied somehow. That goofy-looking Strawhat had talked about dreams too. It was strange.

"You should try it."

Shuraiya gave his companion a sidelong glance, "Becoming a pirate?"

"Following a dream."

Shuraiya moved and placed his hip against the railing. Taking his time, he crossed his arms and looked over Roronoa from head-to-toe. Strength, and a serenity born of confidence were evident in the lines of his body and the black eyes staring back at him unwaveringly. Shuraiya suddenly felt the emptiness inside intensely, like a sharp pain.

What he wouldn't give to have what this man has.

"Dreams aren't for men like me."

"I see." Shuraiya tore his gaze away from intense dark eyes. He didn't want to see the pity that must be there. He tangled a hand in his wavy hair in a self-soothing gesture. Roronoa's earrings rang softly in the light sea breeze. "Then change."

Shuraiya jerked in shock; his hazel eyes instinctively flying back to the man beside him. His gaze was instantly trapped by Roronoa's intense stare. "What?"

The first mate took a step nearer. "Dreams are for those who reach out and take them with their own two hands. If you cannot do that as you are, then change yourself into a man who can."

"Don't mock me, Pirate Hunter. It's not that simple…" Shuraiya sneered and bit back hard on the pathetic feelings of helplessness that churned in his throat - burning like bile.

"I would never do that. Not about something important… and my name is Zoro. I've left that other name behind me."

"Zoro…" Shuraiya squeezed his hands into fists. How could this man move forward so easily?

His entire life, Shuraiya had dragged his past behind him like an anchor. He had thought that when he had his revenge - when he watched Gasparde breathe his last - then he would be free. Why did he now feel more chained down than ever?

He envied Zoro from the bottom of his heart.

Before he could stop himself, Shuraiya reached out pressed his fingertips to Zoro's chest. Warmth tingled up his arm from the point of contact, and Shuraiya could count each beat of Roronoa's heart. It wouldn't take much - he knew he was faster - and that rhythm beneath his hands would die, and all this man's dreams would go with it. Black eyes watched him carefully, but the first mate didn't twitch in the slightest. "This dream of yours… It might not be possible, right? Why chase something that might never be?"

"Possible or impossible doesn't mean shit to me. If I'm fighting with all that I am, then I am accomplishing something. Letting even the smallest doubt cloud my conviction will only result in a weak spirit and a dull blade."

Shuraiya flinched guiltily under the intensity of Roronoa's eyes. "So you think I am weak."

"No."

Shuraiya actually stopped breathing for a second. "But why?! I failed! I couldn't…" He gripped Zoro's shirt as his shoulders bowed under the weight of his shame. "I couldn't accomplish the one thing that I have been fighting toward for all this time! How is that not weakness? How could you say that I can change…? I HAVEN'T CHANGED IN EIGHT YEARS! I'm… I'm still just a helpless brat."

Zoro's large, calloused hand wrapped tightly around his wrist as he leaned closer and glared into Shuraiya's hazel eyes. "Failure isn't a weakness, idiot."

Shuraiya looked away tried to swallow around the sudden lump in his throat. What would happen if he chose to believe Zoro? Could he move forward?

The hand around his wrist released before ghosting up his yellow sleeve; Shuraiya's eyes widened as rough fingers grasped his jaw and pulled his face back so his eyes connected to Zoro's once more. "And revenge isn't a dream. You still have a long journey ahead of you filled with dreams worth fighting for… Shuraiya."

The low rumble of Zoro's voice washed over his senses, accompanied by the brush of warm breath on his face. Shuraiya couldn't stop the light blush that settled on his pale features. The way the other man had said his name… and Zoro was _too close_; Shuraiya's pulse leapt out of his control.

Roronoa's black eyes studied his face closely for a few embarrassing seconds. Wanting to escape, Shuraiya squeezed his eyes shut and tried to pull out of Zoro's grip. At this intimate distance, his feelings of admiration and envy toward Zoro were rapidly turning into something _else_.

Roronoa released his face - but before Shuraiya could retreat - the first mate slid his palm gently along Shuraiya's bruised and bandaged cheek before sinking into the waves of his hair. Zoro's other hand wrapped around his lower back, pulling him close. Shuraiya's eyes flew open just in time to see Zoro's black eyes flutter closed as the larger man leaned in and captured Shuraiya's lips in a kiss.

Zoro's lips were firm and warm.

That solitary thought trickled through the barriers of his stunned mind. All of Shuraiya's senses narrowed down to one point as Zoro's mouth moved against his, reducing his mental capabilities to that of a particularly dumb rock. It wasn't until Zoro started to pull back that Shuraiya fully realized what had just happened.

Roronoa-fucking-Zoro had kissed him.

_And why the fuck wasn't he kissing back_?

Shuraiya aggressively yanked Zoro back by that damn haramaki and kissed him in earnest. His enthusiasm earned him a low rumble of approval from Zoro; the sound tingling from his lips straight down to his groin. Kissing Zoro felt _good_, and suddenly Shuraiya couldn't be bothered to remember why he had tried to get away from this feeling.

Ignoring the sting of his wounds, Shuraiya opened his mouth to let Zoro deepen the kiss. An electric shock of arousal made him shudder when Zoro's hot, slick tongue immediately thrust inside and stroked against his own. He could taste the tang of his own blood on Zoro's tongue. His hips jerked as he felt Zoro tug at his strawberry-blonde locks to tilt his head _just so_, and Shuraiya could only moan when Zoro's skillful tongue teased at the ridges of his palate. The wide hand at his back slid down to massage his ass.

Shuraiya jumped and common sense finally broke through the haze of lust clouding his brain. Reluctantly, he broke the kiss, panting and flushed. "Zo-Zoro… I _can't_!"

Zoro frowned, "Are your injuries too painful?"

"They hurt… but really, we're on a small boat - _in the open_!" Zoro raised a brow and Shuraiya rolled his eyes, "I really don't want to have to explain to everyone why we have our pants down together on the back of the boat."

"We might never get another chance."

"That's not…!" Shuraiya bit his lower lip and avoided Zoro's searching gaze. Zoro was right; he might very well not ever see the green-headed swordsman again. The thought of losing Zoro so soon after having poured out his heart to the man, hurt worse then any of the many wounds that Gasparde had inflicted on his body.

"I-if we do this… can you make me a promise?"

Zoro's dark eyes caught his, "What is it?"

Shuraiya reached up a hand to brush Zoro's earrings, making them sound against each other quietly. "I want to meet you again someday; to show you what I become."

Smiling slightly, Zoro pressed his forehead to Shuraiya's and moved his hand to trace his thumb along the hook tattoo under Shuraiya's eye. "I will gladly promise you that."

Releasing a breath he wasn't aware that he'd been holding, Shuraiya gripped green hair and pulled Zoro back into a kiss; moaning quietly as the caress quickly grew deeper and more passionate. Zoro's hands ran over Shuraiya's body, making him arch his spine and press his hips to Zoro's. Blunt fingertips massaged at the hardened points of Shuraiya's nipples through his shirt, making him gasp and pull unintentionally away from their kiss; Zoro's tongue trailed a thin rope of saliva as it slipped from Shuraiya's mouth. Shuraiya couldn't stop himself from shaking all over as Zoro pulled down the zipper of his shirt, exposing his pale skin, before stroking a hand down his ribcage. "Feels so good…"

Zoro smirked before leaning in to place wet kisses and light nibbles up the line of Shuraiya's jaw. "Not worried anymore about getting caught?"

Shuraiya's eyes rolled back in his head, and he moaned helplessly as Zoro sucked on his earlobe. His fingers tightened in Zoro's hair when the swordsman began rubbing circles with a calloused thumb on the sensitive skin between Shuraiya's navel and hipbone. "I-I… Dammit, just _hurry_!"

Zoro hummed thoughtfully in his ear. Shuraiya groaned with relief as Zoro finally undid his pants and yanked them down with his underwear; his freed erection bobbing in the sea air, and drooling pre-cum onto dark blonde curls. Zoro's face was flushed with arousal and his black eyes were warm as he moved back and _stared_. Shuraiya's cock twitched visibly under Zoro's inspection.

Shuraiya urgently grabbed the clothing at Zoro's waist and tugged. "Please…!" His voice was rough from pure _need_.

Passion leapt in Zoro's eyes like flames; he dragged Shuraiya into a hard kiss by his longish hair. Shuraiya's free hand flew up and wrapped around Zoro's wrist. His fingers fluttered against Zoro's pulse as each nip and lick from Zoro's talented mouth drove his senses insane.

When Zoro's other hand closed around Shuraiya's hard dick, he cried out into the bigger man's mouth. "Quiet." Zoro mumbled against his lips and tugged punishingly at Shuraiya's hair. The light pain buzzed along his nerves and wrenched a guttural sound of pleasure from Shuraiya's throat. He could feel Zoro's hips jerk, coarse cloth teasing the tip of his erection, as the green-haired man reacted to the sounds of his arousal. Zoro's hand squeezed briefly at his cock before stroking along its length. Shuraiya whimpered in his throat and let his hips move with the rhythm of Zoro's hand. Zoro's strong tongue thrust into Shuraiya's mouth and began to mimic the motion of their bodies.

A quick clench of his grip at Zoro's wrist was all he could manage as a warning before another squeeze from Zoro tightened his balls and Shuraiya came on the front of Zoro's haramaki. His hips were still twitching helplessly when Zoro let him go and shook off his grip to spin his slender body around and bend him over the ship's rail. He shivered with nervous excitement when Zoro trailed sticky fingers over the curve of his ass before thrusting a cum-slicked digit into his virgin hole.

"GAH!" The pain was sharp and burning like touching flame-soaked metal. Zoro's other hand rubbed soothingly at his hip and thigh before rucking up his shirt and placing apologetic kisses along Shuraiya's spine. Shuraiya did his best to relax as Zoro slowly moved his finger in and out. The burning sensation increased when Zoro added a second finger. Shuraiya gripped the ship's rail tight and clenched his teeth. Zoro noticed his discomfort and crooked his fingers, searching, until Shuraiya's hips buckled and he cried out in pleasure.

Pain dissolved into heat and arousal as Zoro continued to stroke Shuraiya's insides, making sure to scissor his fingers to properly stretch his partner's entrance. Shuraiya's hips juddered with each push of Zoro's fingers, and he subconsciously parted his legs as wide as the trousers around his ankles would allow. He felt Zoro add a third finger and nearly screamed in bliss when the swordsman thrust his fingers in roughly, hitting his rectal wall where his prostate was pressed directly.

Zoro withdrew his hand, and Shuraiya whimpered at the awful feeling of emptiness. "Zoro…"

"I want you, Shuraiya." He felt the head of Zoro's cock prod at his anus. Zoro placed an affectionate kiss against his sweaty back before continuing, "You're strong and so damn sexy. I want to fuck you and make you mine."

Shuraiya groaned and pressed his ass back against Zoro's erection. "Do it!"

Zoro spat in his palm and slicked himself with spit and pre-cum before gripping Shuraiya's hipbones and pushing himself in slowly. Shuraiya breathed through the sharp pain of being penetrated, concentrating on the emotion of being taken and filled by Zoro. His arousal spiked when he heard Zoro moan softly. _Zoro wanted him_. It didn't matter why, but somehow Zoro didn't see him as pathetic or a failure; Zoro found him worth seeking out to offer comfort, and desirable enough to make himself vulnerable and to give himself to Shuraiya, emotionally and sexually. Shuraiya felt Zoro's fingers fondly massage at the sensitive crease between the tops of his thighs and his hips, and he finally fully relaxed. Zoro slid in up to the hilt with a quiet grunt, and the two of them remained still for a moment, adjusting and enjoying the feeling of being joined intimately with a caring partner.

This time Shuraiya led the motion, experimentally bucking his hips and gasping at the sensation of Zoro's hot flesh putting pressure on his prostate as it slid out. Zoro made a throaty, strangled sound of pleasure before tightening his hold on Shuraiya's hips and starting a steady, rhythmic thrusting. Shuraiya's spine arched in response as Zoro began to increase the pace; bolts of white-hot arousal making his reawakened cock jerk as it steadily dripped pre-cum.

One large hand still holding his hips in place, Shuraiya shivered when Zoro stroked the other hand up his body and gripped the back of his wide, black collar. Shuraiya easily allowed himself to bend his spine further back as Zoro tugged him closer by his collar. He moaned as Zoro interrupted his thrusts with a slow, hard grind. Shuraiya could feel Zoro's panting breaths at the nape of his neck where his hair had slipped to the side. Zoro paired his hot tongue on the back of Shuraiya's neck with a rough jerk of his hips. The edges of Shuraiya's vision grayed as he very nearly went over the edge again. Teeth replaced tongue, and Zoro bit him hard enough to bleed as Shuraiya's hips lurched from the force of another hard thrust. "Shit! Zo-ZORO!"

His hips spasmed sporadically as Shuraiya orgasmed harder than he'd ever had in his life. His vision briefly went white as it felt like all of his insides went liquid and molten before bursting out into the sea air. His whole body was shaking as Zoro made one last thrust, wrapping his strong arms around Shuraiya's body and gluing himself to the strawberry-blonde's back as he growled and came hard inside his new lover. Shuraiya's whole body felt loose and sensitive, and he was grateful for Zoro's firm hold. The sudden weakness in his muscles and joints would have made him fall overboard if Zoro hadn't been pinning him in place, nuzzling at the back of his neck.

With a contented sigh, Zoro pulled Shuraiya down onto the deck before lapping the blood from his newest wound. Shuraiya closed his eyes and gave himself over to the sex high still buzzing through his veins. He leaned back against Zoro's chest before falling peacefully asleep.

"Aiya… Shuraiya, wake up." Shuraiya shifted and cracked a hazel eye open. Zoro coaxed him further awake with little kisses to his temple and jaw. "You've been asleep. I don't know how much longer we have before the island…"

"Right." Shuraiya struggled further upright before trying to pull up his pants by wriggling.

Zoro had rearranged his clothes, wiped off some suspicious spots, and was standing before Shuraiya managed to button his pants. He accepted the hand that Zoro offered, and let himself be pulled to his feet. Zoro stepped forward, and his fingertips lightly brushed Shuraiya's belly as the first mate helpfully zippered up Shuraiya's shirt.

The two of them stood there for a moment, black eyes studying hazel. Shuraiya couldn't bring himself to regret having sex with Zoro; he only wished that they had more time. Zoro flashed a half-smile, "So did anything change?"

Shuraiya was a little taken aback. Change? "What…?"

"You said you felt like a failure and that you were weak. Do you still feel that way?"

"No… thanks to you." Shuraiya didn't bother trying to hide his blush.

"Good."

"LAND HO!" Luffy's voice rang out from the front of the ship.

Shit!

Shuraiya's eyes widened. At some point he had entirely forgotten that it wasn't just the two of them on this boat. How loud had they been? Oh god! His sister…!

"Stop worrying. No one paid any attention to us." Zoro gently kissed his bandaged cheek. "I have to go help my captain."

Shuraiya nodded slowly. This was goodbye wasn't it? He would get off at this island and he'd never see Zoro again… Shuraiya's lower lip trembled as he watched Zoro walk away. He limped over to the railing; _their spot_. Holding onto the rail like a lifeline, Shuraiya willed himself to bury his sadness, and ignore the twinges in his lower body that only reminded him of what he had to leave behind.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Shuraiya stood straight and tall in the small boat with the old man and little Adelle. His emotions were only barely under control, but outwardly he believed he looked fairly calm. His poor sister wasn't handling things as well. The little girl was nearly in tears as each pirate bid her a special farewell. When it was the first mate's turn, he stepped up and locked eyes with Shuraiya. "Work hard."

Shuraiya barely managed to swallow around the lump in his throat. He could hear the sound of Zoro's earrings over the creak of wood and rope as the green-haired man turned and walked away without looking back. Was that it? Shuraiya's sinking spirits were brought back to life when Zoro reached out and brushed the railing at _their spot_ before continuing back to his duties.

_"Work hard."_

Shuraiya's eyes bored into Zoro's broad back. He would change; he would work hard. He would do it for himself, for his sister… and for Zoro. After all, they had promised to meet again. He stood, watching as the Strawhats' ship grew smaller in the distance. The dull ache in his lower body and the throbbing of the bite on his neck were reassurances. Zoro would keep his word.

This wasn't goodbye.


End file.
